Chapter 19: Departure, City No. 023

Zhou Yang rested at home for three days this time.

On October 13, the members of the Chasing Wind Squad gathered again and set out on another wilderness hunting expedition.

Riding the Warrior Special Train the whole way, they soon arrived at the forward supply base set up by the Southeastern Military Region.

"This supply base of the Southeastern Military Region is huge!"

Zhou Yang and the others walked through the base, constantly exclaiming.

Especially Zhou Yang, who was visiting a city‑level wilderness supply base for the first time, was instantly shocked by its scale.

This base is far larger than the County No. 02011 supply base they visited last time, and the number of Warriors is multiplied by an unknown factor; groups of Warriors can be seen moving everywhere.

"That's the Divine Arrow Squad! The one with the big bow must be their captain, Divine Arrow Chen Long; I heard his strength is already close to the lowest‑tier War God!"

"And the Flowing Light Squad, an all‑War General‑rank squad!"

"Whoa! That person—could it be Po Jun Dao Tong Heng? Isn't he a War‑God‑tier powerhouse? Why is he here too!"

As they walked, Zhou Yang saw many powerful Warriors famed on the Warriors' internal network, truly an eye‑opening sight.

Seeing Zhou Yang's stunned expression all the way, Lei Hong smiled and offered an explanation.

"City No. 023 is closer to the so‑called Demon Cave, City No. 003; some people transfer here, so the crowd is normal."

"Let's go, collect the keys, rest a bit, and we'll set out this afternoon!"

After lunch and a short rest at the base, the fully armed Chasing Wind Squad set off on their journey.

Following the abandoned road for about two days, they gradually entered the outskirts of City No. 023.

"Zhou Yang, since this is your first time in a city‑level wilderness area, I need to remind you of something."

Lei Hong, while marching, took the time to brief Zhou Yang on some precautions.

"This place differs from the county town: buildings are dense, monsters are numerous and strong, and there are many flying monsters as well."

"Therefore, resting on a rooftop like last time isn't suitable; it's better to find the interior of a taller building, so you stay away from ground‑level beasts while avoiding aerial attacks."

"Got it, Lei Shu!"

Zhou Yang, standing beside him, nodded repeatedly.

These are precious insights distilled from countless Warriors' personal battles; he must record them carefully.

Lei Hong lifted his binoculars to scan the distant building cluster and soon spotted a suitable spot.

"Our first target is the Jinpin Home Community; it's a residential block with solid walls, and there are plenty of monsters nearby."

"Yes!"

Zhou Yang and the others nodded in agreement.

Then, with Zhou Yang leading and Lei Hong following, the group proceeded cautiously toward the destination.

The monster density in City No. 023 is at least several times higher than that of County No. 02011.

Along the way, even though they tried to avoid them, they inevitably engaged in several bouts of combat.

Zhou Yang alone slew dozens of Beast‑Soldier‑rank monsters, and even a primary Beast‑General‑rank monster that he and Lei Hong quickly cut down together.

After more than half an hour, they finally approached the targeted Jinpin Home Community.

"Zhou Yang, let's go first, up the stairs!"

They hurried toward a residential tower with a clear view; Lei Hong and Zhou Yang led, and the group darted inside.

"Clear the monsters inside quickly!"

The building had a full 25 floors; Zhou Yang's team swept every level, killing over ten more monsters, then returned to the 16th floor to breach a unit.

"Alright, let's use this spot as our temporary base."

Lei Hong began, "The surrounding area is a vast residential zone, buildings are dense, and there should be plenty of monsters. Rest a bit, then start hunting; our target is those Beast‑General‑rank monsters that aren't in large packs!"

"Good!"

Zhou Yang and a few others took a short rest, then each grabbed binoculars to scout for prey.

"City‑level wilderness is better; many Beast‑General monsters roam alone, unlike the county towns where Beast‑Soldier minions always come in big packs."

While searching, everyone laughed and chatted.

"Hey, captain, I spotted an Ironclad Barbaric Bull; judging by its horn color, it's a primary Beast‑General, and there's no herd around!"

"I also found one; over there is a primary Beast‑General‑rank tiger‑mastiff, but there are about ten Beast‑Soldier monsters nearby!"

Soon, squad members successively identified suitable targets.

"Alright, depart—let's start with a lucky first strike!"

Lei Hong ordered.

Zhou Yang, wielding the Xingkong Long Spear at the forefront, with his father Zhou Yong and Uncle Liu guarding his sides, Lei Hong following, the group rushed down the stairs toward the spotted target.

A few minutes later, they approached a massive bull‑shaped monster, entirely fire‑red, each of its twin horns encircled with gold patterns.

"Lei Shu, you keep watch; I'll handle this Ironclad Barbaric Bull!"

Zhou Yang whispered a line and charged forward first.

Lei Hong and his men quickly dispersed, keeping watch for any danger nearby.

"Moo~~~"

The fire‑red Ironclad Barbaric Bull let out an angry roar upon seeing a human approach.

It then lowered its head, thrusting its two massive black spikes toward Zhou Yang in a fierce charge.

Its huge hooves pounded the already crumbling cement road, cracking it further.

Zhou Yang maintained a normal forward speed, and in the blink of an eye man and beast met!

In that instant, Zhou Yang's speed surged; his feet moved with a nimble, flickering step, his body barely brushing past the Ironclad Barbaric Bull's sharp horns.

At the same moment, his Xingkong Long Spear sprang into action, thrusting at a sharp angle into the bull's weakest spot—the thin neck.

During the spear's thrust, a burst of force erupted within his body, propelling the spear to accelerate again.

The hazy starlight flickered and vanished!

Puff!

The black Long Spear drove deep into the iron‑armored barbarian ox's neck, then was swiftly withdrawn; the massive red ox's body, propelled by inertia, lunged forward for more than ten meters before crashing heavily to the ground.

A huge wound on its neck kept gushing blood, its limbs twitched repeatedly, and after a short while it fell completely silent.

"Well done, this ultimate spear technique is impressive—one thrust felled a junior war‑general‑rank monster!"

A few members of the squad laughed and gathered around, and squad leader Lei Hong even drew a Grade‑9 dagger to personally dissect the iron‑armored barbarian ox for materials.

Beast‑general‑rank monsters have extremely tough scales and hide, making it very laborious even for a Warrior‑rank Warrior to dissect.

In the Wind‑Chasing Squad, the task of dissecting Beast‑General‑rank material is usually handled personally by the squad leader Lei Hong.

Meanwhile, Zhou Yang, standing aside, silently contemplated the sensation of that thrust.

"The Long Spear's greatest trait is its ultimate concentration and release; the World‑Destroying Spear Technique pushes this to the extreme, allowing a single thrust to pierce the iron‑armored barbarian ox's resilient scales,"

He reviewed the recent combat details in his mind, a faint smile appearing, "And when I dodged that iron‑armored barbarian ox just now, that feeling—was it Subtle Level?"

At the instant he intersected with the iron‑armored barbarian ox, he instinctively employed the footwork recorded in the World‑Destroying, evading the ox's charge by a hair's breadth.

If his guess is correct, perhaps he has already brushed against the threshold of Subtle Level footwork.

"Indeed, a great start!"

He smiled inwardly, while Lei Hong over there had already harvested the valuable material from the iron‑armored barbarian ox.

"Finished. Withdraw. Next one!"

The members of the Wind‑Chasing Squad were in high spirits, rushing swiftly toward the next target.

(End of Chapter)